&#34;Non-wagering Game for Reallocating Collectible and Hobby-Related Items&#34;

ABSTRACT

A game apparatus where players contribute hobby items to be reallocated. The game apparatus is comprised of a plurality of player game boards, each different from all others and including thereon a combination of randomized words arranged in rows and columns, each randomized word pertaining to a hobby; a plurality of terminology disks, each different from all others and containing one of the randomized words; and a plurality of marker disks in which one terminology disk is selected and the players use a marker disk to cover the corresponding word on his or her player game board. When one of the player game boards is covered by the marker disks in a pre-designated pattern (such as a designated line, shape, or four-corner configuration), that player collects the hobby items contributed by the players.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 11/453,585 filed Jun. 15, 2006 (“Game for Wagering Hobby-Related Objects”).

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to the general field of games and in particular to the field of games for allocating and trading hobby items.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of a game apparatus.

FIG. 2 illustrates one embodiment of a player game board in which randomized words matching the terminology disks have been randomly selected during play to form a winning board.

FIG. 3 illustrates a flow chart chart of one embodiment of a method for playing a game for allocating and trading hobby items.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow chart of an alternative embodiment of a method for playing a game for allocating and trading hobby items.

BACKGROUND

There are many hobbies such as beading, quilting, sewing, collecting, gardening and card trading where hobbyists would like to trade or supplement their collections. Trade shows, shops, and magazines cater to these hobbyists allowing them to purchase hobby items to add to their collections. A hobbyist may also desire to sell some of his or her hobby items so that he or she can purchase subsequent items to add to his or her collection. However, selling hobby items at trade shows requires a substantial time commitment and is not practical for the hobbyist who is looking to get rid of one or few items. Collectible shops are an option for getting rid of one or few items; but the hobbyist often has little or no bargaining power and may not be able to get the value that he or she was hoping to get in exchange for the return.

It is desireable to facilitate trading of hobby items and to reallocate collectable items without spending money, or risking the chance that one or more players will lose all of the items in their collection.

Hobbies that involve trading and acquiring collectibles are often solitary hobbies which allow for little or no social interaction unlike other types of hobbies which are frequently done in groups (e.g., playing team sports).

It is desirable to promote the socalization of the hobbyists who participate in these solitary hobbies by providing them the opportunity to supplement and reallocate their hobby collections while interacting socially.

In addition, the aspect of randomization and chance makes trading more fun.

Glossary

As used herein, the term “hobby” refers to any activity which involves acquisition, accumulation, trading, valuation and/or display of collectible items.

As used herein, the term “hobby item” or “collectible item” refers to any item which may be collected such as beads, coins, buttons, stamps, thimbles, trading cards, rocks, seashells, bobbleheads, seeds, Beanie Babies®, Matchbox® cars, decorative or functional objects or any other item which is collected. As used herein, hobby item is an item owned by the individual playing. Various embodiments may establish ownership of hobby items according to different rules and objectives, including allocation or trading of hobby items before or during play.

As used herein, the term “game” refers to a systematic interraction subject to rules; which may or may not have a competitive objective, and also which may have the objective of facilitating social interraction and/or reallocation of hobby items by an established set of rules which may utilize game objects such as cards, boards, dice, hobby items, containers, chips, markers and representational objects.

As used herein, the term “game objects” refers to cards, boards, dice, hobby items, containers, chips, markers, electronic gaming components and representational objects.

As used herein, the term “collection” refers to more than one hobby-related item owned by an individual or player.

As used herein, the term “game board” refers to a card or board having randomized or strategically arranged representations to facilitate a game.

As used herein, the term “terminology disk” refers to a disk or playing piece having a written or symbolic representation which can be randomized to facilitate play.

As used herein, the term “marker disk” refers to any object which may be used to identify a word that has previously been selected.

As used herein, the term “disk” refers to any piece used for playing a game.

As used herein, the term “trading” refers to reallocation of ownership of possession of a hobby item.

As used herein, the term refers “pot” to any object, location or designated surface suitable for storing the hobby items during game play.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a game for allocating and trading hobby items. In one embodiment of a non-wagering game for reallocating collectible and hobby-related Items disclosed herein, the game is comprised of game boards, marker disks, terminology disks and a tracking board. Each player supplies his or her own hobby item for trading or allocating during the game. Each player adds a hobby item to a “pot” at the beginning of each round. The “pot” may be any object, location or designated surface suitable for storing the hobby items during game play.

In one embodiment of a non-wagering game for reallocating collectible and hobby-related Items disclosed herein, a player pulls terminology disks from a bag or another object suitable for storing and mixing the terminology disks. Players place a marker disk over the corresponding term on his or her game boards. The first player who completes a pre-designated pattern (e.g., a row, column or diagonal) wins the round and takes all the hobby items in the pot. Each player then places another hobby item in the pot and another round is played. In the alternative, the player who won the round may sit out the following round(s) allowing the remaining players the opportunity to supplement their collection.

In an alternate embodiment of a non-wagering game for reallocating collectible and hobby-related Items disclosed herein, each player hides his or her game board and designates hobby items based on the value of the item and the strength of his or her game board. During round one, a specified number of terminology disks are removed from the bag or other object. Each player places a marker over the corresponding term on his or her game board. Each player can then choose to place a hobby item in the pot or pass. The stronger the player's board, the higher value hobby item or the more hobby items he or she will want to place in the pot. If all players pass, every player stays in for the second round. Once one player places a hobby item in the pot, other players who want to stay in the game will have to place a hobby item(s) of a similar value in the pot. A player may opt out at any time and wait for the next game to begin. Round two begins, another specified number of terminology disks are removed, and the designating process repeats. Round three is the last chance for the players to pass, fold, or contribute to the pot. Terminology disks are drawn until someone completes a pre-designated pattern (e.g., a row, column or diagonal) and takes everything in the pot.

In other embodiments of a non-wagering game for reallocating collectible and hobby-related Items disclosed herein, game objects may include a single game board instead of individual player game boards; or playing cards or dice may be used instead of or in addition to terminology disks in order to facilitate the allocating and trading of hobby items. Additionally, markers, representational objects and electronic gaming components may be used.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the present invention, references are made in the text hereof to embodiments of an apparatus for allocating and trading hobby items, only some of which are described herein. It should be understood, nevertheless, that no limitations on the scope of the invention are thereby intended. One of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that modifications such as the dimensions, size, and shape of the components, alternate but functionally similar locations, and the inclusion of additional elements are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art; and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the written description do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Some of these possible modifications are mentioned in the following descriptions. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a representative basis for teaching one of ordinary skill in the art to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed apparatus or manner.

It should be understood that the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. In addition, in the embodiments depicted herein, like reference numerals in the various drawings refer to identical or near identical structural elements.

Moreover, the term “substantially” or “approximately” as used herein may be applied to modify any quantitative representation that could permissibly vary without resulting in a change in the basic function to which it is related.

FIG. 1 is a top view of one embodiment of game 101 which includes player game boards 102 containing a grid-like pattern and randomized words 103 within the pattern, terminology disks 105 containing words which correspond to randomized words 103, container 104 for holding and mixing terminology disks 105 during the course of play of game 101, and marker disks 109 for covering randomized words 103 on player game boards 102.

Each player game board 102 is unique from all other player game boards 102 in game 101 and contains a combination of randomized words 103 arranged in rows and columns with randomized words 103 pertaining to a hobby. In the embodiment shown, randomized words 103 shown on player game boards 102 pertain to the hobby of beading, but in other embodiments, randomized words 103 may pertain to a different hobby or other activity such as quilting or card collecting. In the embodiment shown, player game board 102 has a grid pattern of six by seven spaces, and each space contains a randomized word 103. However, it should be understood that any dimensions or shape of a pattern may be used, such as a nine by nine pattern.

In the embodiment shown, a plurality of terminology disks 105 is used, each of which contains a word corresponding to randomized words 103 appearing on player game boards 102. Terminology disks 105 are circular plastic pieces. However, in other embodiments, terminology disks 105 may be made of metal, plastic or cardboard, or could be another shape such as a square, and could further also be cards or other embodiments. In another embodiment, player game boards 102 may be a software generated computer interface, and terminology disks 105 may be randomly generated words on a screen corresponding to on screen player game boards 102.

In the embodiment shown, terminology disks 105 are mixed or combined by placing them in container 104 and dispensing at least one terminology disk 105 at a time. In other embodiments, terminology disks 105 may be combined or randomized without the use of container 104, or by use of a receptacle such as a turning wheel, magnetized device or by any other utensil or method suitable for containing, combining, and dispensing terminology disks 105. In other embodiments, a method of selection may be used which does not involve terminology disks 105, such as random generation of randomized words 103 by a software program or choosing words from a list.

In the embodiment shown, marker disks 109 are flat round plastic pieces, but in other embodiments marker disks 109 may be made of metal, glass, paper, or other material. Marker disks 109 may also be objects such as coins, beads, buttons, stamps, manufactured game pieces, or other objects suitable for marking player game boards 102 to form pre-determined patterns to indicate which words have been dispensed, called, or identified on terminology disks 105.

FIG. 2 illustrates one example of player game board 102 in which randomized words 103 matching terminology disks 105 have been randomly selected during play to form diagonal line 108. In this embodiment, player game board 102 has a nine by nine grid pattern and title word 110 across the top of player game board 102 related to the same hobby as each randomized word 103.

FIG. 3 illustrates a flow chart of one exemplary embodiment of a method for playing a game for allocating and trading hobby items. Each player supplies his or her own hobby item for trading or allocating during the game. In the method shown, player game boards are distributed to each player (step 1). In addition, each player adds a hobby item to a “pot” (step 2). One player pulls terminology disks from a bag or another object suitable for holding and mixing the terminology disks (step 3). Players position a marker disk over the corresponding term on his or her game board (step 4). Steps 3 and 4 are continued until a player completes a pre-designated pattern (e.g., a row, column or diagonal). The first player to complete the pre-designated pattern wins the round and collects all the hobby items in the pot (step. 5). Each player then places another hobby item in the pot and another round is played. In the alternative, the player who won the round may sit out the following round(s) allowing the remaining players the opportunity to supplement his or her collection.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow chart of an exemplary embodiment of a method for playing a game for allocating and trading hobby items. In the embodiment shown, a player game board is distributed to each player and each subsequently hides his or her game board (step 1). Hiding the player game board allows each player to designate a bead or multiple beads with a value corresponding to the strength of his or her game board. During round one, a specified number of terminology disks are removed from the bag or other object suitable for holding and mixing terminology disks (step 2). Each player places a marking disc over the corresponding term on his or her game board (step 3). Each player can then choose to place a hobby item in the pot or pass (step 4). The stronger the player's board, the higher value hobby item or the more hobby items he or she will want to place in the pot. If all players pass, every player stays in for the second round (step 5). Once one player places a hobby item in the pot, other players who want to stay in the game will have to place a hobby item(s) of a similar value in the pot. A player may “fold” at any time and wait for the next game to begin. Round two begins and another specified number of terminology disks are removed, the players place marking disks, and the wagering process repeats (steps 2-4). Round three is the last chance for the players to pass, fold, or contribute to the pot. Terminology disks are drawn until someone completes a pre-designated pattern (e.g., a row, column or diagonal) and collects everything in the pot. 

1. A non-wagering game apparatus for reallocating hobby items comprised of: one or more game objects; one or more hobby items to be reallocated by players; a set of game instructions for having an objective of reallocating said one or more hobby items utilizing said one or more game objects.
 2. The non-wagering game apparatus for reallocating hobby items of claim 1, wherein said set of game instructions specify that a player who has won a round must refrain from participating in a subsequent round so that hobby items are reallocated evenly among the participants.
 3. The non-wagering game apparatus for reallocating hobby items of claim 1, wherein said one or more hobby items to be reallocated is selected from a group consisting of beads, coins, buttons, stamps, thimbles, trading cards, rocks, seashells, bobbleheads, seeds, Beanie Babies® and Matchbox® cars.
 4. The non-wagering game apparatus for reallocating hobby items of claim 1 wherein said game objects are selected from a group consisting of cards, boards, dice, hobby items, containers, chips, markers, electronic gaming components and representational objects.
 5. The non-wagering game apparatus for reallocating hobby items of claim 4 wherein said game objects are designed to visually represent the hobby to which said hobby items are related.
 6. A non-wagering game apparatus for reallocating hobby items comprised of: a plurality of player game boards, each of said plurality of player game boards different from all others, and each including thereon a combination of randomized words arranged in a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns, each of said randomized words pertaining to a hobby; at least one hobby item, wherein said at least one hobby item is contributed by a player; a plurality of terminology disks, each of said plurality of terminology disks different from all others, and each containing one of said randomized words; and a plurality of marker disks, wherein one of said plurality of terminology disks is selected and one of said randomized words appearing on each of said plurality of player game boards corresponding to said randomized word on said plurality of terminology disks is covered using one of said plurality of marker disks, and when one of said plurality of player game boards is covered with a plurality of marker disks forming a pre-designated pattern, at least one item to be traded or reallocated is collection, said at least one item to be reallocated is related to said hobby.
 7. The non-wagering game apparatus of claim 6, wherein said apparatus further includes an object suitable for mixing said plurality of terminology disks and for withdrawing at least one of said plurality of terminology disks at a time.
 8. The non-wagering game apparatus of claim 6, wherein said at least one hobby item to be reallocated is selected from a group consisting of beads, coins, buttons, stamps, thimbles, trading cards, rocks, seashells, bobbleheads, seeds, Beanie Babies® and Matchbox® cars.
 9. The non-wagering game apparatus of claim 6, wherein said game boards and said terminology disks are optimized so that hobby items are reallocated evenly among the participants.
 10. The non-wagering game apparatus of claim 6, wherein said game boards further include a written set of instructions containing rules pursuant to which hobby items are reallocated evenly among the participants.
 11. The non-wagering game apparatus of claim 6, wherein said plurality of player game boards appears as computer screen interfaces, and said randomized words are determined by a computer algorithm.
 12. A gaming method for reallocating hobby items consisting of: each player identifying a hobby item to be traded; designating the said hobby item to be traded by placing it in a pot; following a set of game instructions wherein at least one game object is used to randomly select a recipient of said pot; repeating said set of game instructions until a plurality of said hobby items has been reallocated.
 13. The gaming method of claim 12, wherein said hobby items to be traded is selected from a group consisting of beads, coins, buttons, stamps, thimbles, trading cards, rocks, seashells, bobbleheads, seeds, Beanie Babies® and Matchbox® cars.
 14. The gaming method of claim 12 wherein said at least one game object is selected from a group consisting of cards, boards, dice, hobby items, containers, chips, markers, electronic gaming components and representational objects.
 15. The gaming method of claim 12, wherein said set of game instructions specify that a player who has won a round must refrain from participating in a subsequent round so that hobby items are reallocated evenly among the participants. 